Festivalgoers were left surprised after it was announced that heavy metal rockers Metallica would be headlining Glastonbury this year, but apparently the band were just as shocked themselves.
As the first heavy metal band to bag Glasto's top billing, Metallica are clearly still coming to terms with their famous gig. Frontman James Hetfield even thought other famous metal bands would get in there before them.
He told the Mirror: "It's remarkable. Why not Sabbath? Why not Judas Priest? There are plenty of British bands who've been around a long time, who are well established, and have a long-standing tradition of heavy music. But we've been asked to play, and it's amazing. It's opening the door."
Metallica at the Grammys earlier this year (WENN)
Metallica, who played the Pyramid stage at Glasto last night, didn't have the full support of the festivalgoers after they were announced as headliners back in May. In fact, a survey by Viagogo even showed that a huge amount of people who purchased tickets early wanted to sell their tickets after the heavy metal group were confirmed.
To make matter even worse, there was a petition started to kick them out of Glasto after fans discovered that Hetfield was pro-hunting, something which goes against the hippy feel of Glastonbury.
With regard to their haters Hetfield explained: "Some people might have an understanding about Metallica that they don't like 'em, they've heard a song, and they're like, 'Oh, it's all that heavy, crazy stuff'. But they haven't seen us live, that's when you see the real us. We tend to win people over, even if they don't wanna be."
Hammett and Hetfield on stage last night (WENN)
Band mate Kirk Hammett then added: "When we started out, a lot of people didn't get us. There were a good two or three years where people were scratching their heads and not knowing what to make of us. And if that happens again at Glastonbury, so be it. For me, it's not gonna make much difference. We're just gonna go out there and enjoy ourselves."
However, it seems like they won the crowd round, with many festival goers attending their set on the famous Pyramid stage. Metallica even put those hunting rumours to bed, as they played an anti-hunting video before coming out on stage to huge applause.
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